A court in Turkey has handed down significant prison sentences to the owner and architect of a hotel that tragically collapsed during a February 2023 earthquake, resulting in the deaths of 72 individuals.
Justice Served: Sentencing in Turkey's Isias Hotel Collapse
Justice Served: Sentencing in Turkey's Isias Hotel Collapse
Court delivers sentencing for hotel owner and architect linked to devastating earthquake tragedy.
The owner of the Isias Grand Hotel, Ahmet Bozkurt, and the architect, Erdem Yilmaz, have each been sentenced to 18 years and five months in prison, according to the Anadolu news agency. Bozkurt's son, Mehmet Fatih, received a slightly lesser sentence of 17 years and four months. The devastating earthquake struck the southeastern city of Adiyaman, where the hotel was accommodating a local volleyball team from northern Cyprus and various tourist guides at the time.
The trio was found guilty of "causing the death or injury of more than one person through conscious negligence." In the aftermath of the earthquake, where over 50,000 people perished across Turkey and Syria, criticism mounted regarding the accountability of construction practices, with more than 160,000 structures reported as damaged.
Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Unal Ustel expressed discontent with the sentences, deeming them inadequate, and announced intentions to appeal. However, he did acknowledge the significance of the convictions for those involved in the hotel's construction. The volleyball group, consisting of 39 individuals including children, teachers, and parents from a local school, was primarily lost, with only four parents managing to escape from the debris.
Scientific investigations revealed that the hotel’s construction involved substandard materials, leading to the catastrophic failure of the building during the quake. This incident has sparked ongoing discussions about the Turkish government's role in fostering a construction sector with lax regulatory enforcement, despite tightened building codes after previous disasters.
The trio was found guilty of "causing the death or injury of more than one person through conscious negligence." In the aftermath of the earthquake, where over 50,000 people perished across Turkey and Syria, criticism mounted regarding the accountability of construction practices, with more than 160,000 structures reported as damaged.
Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Unal Ustel expressed discontent with the sentences, deeming them inadequate, and announced intentions to appeal. However, he did acknowledge the significance of the convictions for those involved in the hotel's construction. The volleyball group, consisting of 39 individuals including children, teachers, and parents from a local school, was primarily lost, with only four parents managing to escape from the debris.
Scientific investigations revealed that the hotel’s construction involved substandard materials, leading to the catastrophic failure of the building during the quake. This incident has sparked ongoing discussions about the Turkish government's role in fostering a construction sector with lax regulatory enforcement, despite tightened building codes after previous disasters.
